No ‘release’ papers, Kuber remains anchored in city

The owner of fishing trawler MV Kuber will have to wait for some more time to sail his vessel to Gujarat, as Customs officials are yet to receive the relevant “release” papers. Debasish Panigrahi reports.

The owner of fishing trawler MV Kuber will have to wait for some more time to sail his vessel to Gujarat, as Customs officials are yet to receive the relevant “release” papers.

The court had released the vessel last week.

On Monday, Customs officials allegedly denied permission to Dhanjibhai, the maternal uncle of the owner of the trawler, Vinod Masani, to take it back to Porbunder.

Customs officials have told Dhanjibhai that they would allow the vessel to sail only after they received the relevant “release” papers, Masani told Hindustan Times over telephone from Porbunder.

“The Crime Branch released it, so did the court. However, the Customs officials said we will have to wait for some more time till the paper works were over,” he added.

However, keeping in mind the advanced age of Dhanjibhai, a septuagenarian, the Customs officials told him that they would arrange the vessel to be sent to Porbunder, Masani said.

The 10 Lashkar-e-Tayyeba terrorists had used the fishing trawler to reach the Mumbai coast on November 26 after they hijacked it on the high seas on November 23. The trawler was later seized by the police and anchored at Malet Bunder, near Ferry Wharf. The articles and forensic evidence found in the trawler helped the police build up a strong case against the 26/11 terrorists and establish the origin of the attack to Pakistan.

The court had released the trawler for sail last week on the condition that it would not be sold or destroyed as it was an evidence in the case against Kasab.